13285636 Antony Sutton Wall Street the Bolshevik Revolution Copy

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government. He is President of the Banque de Commerce de l'Azov Don of Petrograd, one of themost important financial institutions of Russia, but had, likely, to leave Russia with the advent of Lenin and his "comrades."

Let me take this opportunity to send sincere greetings to you and Mrs. Polk and to express the hopethat you are now in perfect shape again, and that Mrs. Polk and the children are in good health.

Faithfully yours,[sgd.] Jacob H. Schiff

Hon. Frank L. Polk Counsellor of the State Dept.Washington, D.C.

MM-Encl.

[Dated November 25, 1918]

* * * * *

(d) Translation:

The complete triumph of liberty and right furnishes me a new opportunity to repeat to you my profound admiration for the noble American nation. Hope to see now quick progress on the part of the Allies to help Russia in reestablishing order. Call your attention also to pressing necessity of replacing in Ukraine enemy troops at the very moment of their retirement in order to avoidBolshevist devastation. Friendly intervention of Allies would be greeted everywhere withenthusiasm and looked upon as democratic action, because Bolshevist government does notrepresent Russian people. Wrote you September 19th. Cordial greetings.

[sgd.] Kamenka

COMMENT

This is an important series because it refutes the story of a Jewish bank conspiracy behind theBolshevik Revolution. Clearly Jacob Schiff of Kuhn, Loeb was not interested in supporting theKerensky Liberty Loan and Schiff went to the trouble of drawing State Department attention toKamenka's pleas for Allied intervention against the Bolsheviks. Obviously Schiff and fellow banker Kamenka, unlike J.P. Morgan and John D. Rockefeller, were as unhappy about the Bolsheviks asthey had been about the tsars.

DOCUMENT NO. 4

Description

Memorandum from William Boyce Thompson (director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York)to Lloyd George (prime minister of Great Britain), December 1917.

DOCUMENT

FIRST



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The Russian situation is lost and Russia lies entirely open to unopposed German exploitation unlessa radical reversal of policy is at once undertaken by the Allies.

SECOND

Because of their shortsighted diplomacy, the Allies since the Revolution have accomplished nothing beneficial, and have done considerable harm to their own interests.

THIRD

The Allied representatives in Petrograd have been lacking in sympathetic understanding of thedesire of the Russian people to attain democracy. Our representatives were first connected officiallywith the Czar's regime. Naturally they have been influenced by that environment.

FOURTH

Meanwhile, on the other hand, the Germans have conducted propaganda that has undoubtedly aidedthem materially in destroying the Government, in wrecking the army and in destroying trade andindustry. If this continues unopposed it may result in the complete exploitation of the great country by Germany against the Allies.

FIFTH

I base my opinion upon a careful and intimate study of the situation both outside and inside officialcircles, during my stay in Petrograd between August 7 and November 29, 1917.

SIXTH

"What can be done to improve the situation of the Allies in Russia"?

The diplomatic personnel, both British and American, should be changed to one democratic in spiritand capable of sustaining democratic sympathy.

There should be erected a powerful, unofficial committee, with headquarters in Petrograd, tooperate in the background, so to speak, the influence of which in matters of policy should berecognized and accepted by the DIPLOMATIC, CONSULAR and MILITARY officials of theAllies. Such committee should be so composed in personnel as to make it possible to entrust to itwide discretionary powers. It would presumably undertake work in various channels. The nature of which will become obvious as the task progress. es; it. would aim to meet all new conditions as theymight arise.

SEVENTH

It is impossible now to define at all completely the scope of this new Allied committee. I can perhaps assist to a better understanding of its possible usefulness and service by making a brief reference to the work which I started and which is now in the hands of Raymond Robins, who iswell and favorably known to Col. Buchan — a work which in the future will undoubtedly have to be somewhat altered and added to in order to meet new conditions. My work has been performedchiefly through a Russian "Committee on Civic Education" aided by Madame Breshkovsky, theGrandmother of the Revolution. She was assisted by Dr. David Soskice, the private secretary of thethen Prime Minister Kerensky (now of London); Nicholas Basil Tchaikovsky, at one time Chairmanof the Peasants Co-operative Society, and by other substantial social revolutionaries constituting thesaving element of democracy as between the extreme "Right" of the official and property-owningclass, and the extreme "Left" embodying the most radical elements of the socialistic parties. The



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aim of this committee, as stated in a cable message from Madame Breshkovsky to PresidentWilson, can be gathered from this quotation: "A widespread education is necessary to make Russiaan orderly democracy. We plan to bring this education to the soldier in the camp, to the workman inthe factory, to the peasant in the village." Those aiding in this work realized that for centuries themasses had been under the heel of Autocracy which had given them not protection but oppression;that a democratic form of government in Russian could be maintained only BY THE DEFEAT OFTHE GERMAN ARMY; BY THE OVERTHROW OF GERMAN AUTOCRACY. Could freeRussia, unprepared for great governmental responsibilities, uneducated, untrained, be expected longto survive with imperial Germany her next door neighbor? Certainly not. Democratic Russia would become speedily the greatest war prize the world has even known.

The Committee designed to have an educational center in each regiment of the Russian army, in theform of Soldiers' Clubs. These clubs were organized as rapidly as possible, and lecturers wereemployed to address the soldiers. The lecturers were in reality teachers, and it should beremembered that there is a percentage of 90 among the soldiers of Russia who can neither read nor write. At the time of the Bolshevik outbreak many of these speakers were in the field making a fineimpression and obtaining excellent results. There were 250 in the city of Moscow alone. It wascontemplated by the Committee to have at least 5000 of these lecturers. We had under publicationmany newspapers of the "A B C" class, printing matter in the simplest style, and were assistingabout 100 more. These papers carried the appeal for patriotism, unity and co-ordination into thehomes of the workmen and the peasants.

After the overthrow of the last Kerensky government we materially aided the dissemination of theBolshevik literature, distributing it through agents and by aeroplanes to the German army. If thesuggestion is permissible, it might be well to consider whether it would not be desirable to have thissame Bolshevik literature sent into Germany and Austria across the West and Italian fronts.

EIGHTH

The presence of a small number of Allied troops in Petrograd would certainly have done much to

prevent the overthrow of the Kerensky government in November. I should like to suggest for your consideration, if present conditions continue, the concentration of all the British and FrenchGovernment employes in Petrograd, and if the necessity should arise it might be formed into a fairlyeffective force. It might be advisable even to pay a small sum to a Russian force. There is also alarge body of volunteers recruited in Russia, many of them included in the Inteligentzia of "Center"class, and these have done splendid work in the trenches. They might properly be aided.

NINTH

If you ask for a further programme I should say that it is impossible to give it now. I believe thatintelligent and courageous work will still prevent Germany from occupying the field to itself and

thus exploiting Russia at the expense of the Allies. There will be many ways in which this servicecan be rendered which will become obvious as the work progresses.

COMMENT

Following this memorandum the British war cabinet changed its policy to one of tepid pro-Bolshevism. Note that Thompson admits to distribution of Bolshevik literature by his agents. Theconfusion over the date on which Thompson left Russia (he states November 29th in this document)is cleared up by the Pirnie papers at the Hoover Institution. There were several changes of travel plans and Thompson was still in Russia in early December. The memorandum was probably writtenin Petrograd in late November.



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DOCUMENT NO. 5

DESCRIPTION

Letter dated May 9, 1918, from Felix Frankfurter (then special assistant to the secretary of war) toSanteri Nuorteva (alias for Alexander Nyberg), a Bolshevik agent in the United States. Listed asDocument No. 1544 in the Lusk Committee files, New York:

DOCUMENT

WAR DEPARTMENTWASHINGTON

May 9, 1918

My dear Mr. Nhorteva [ sic ]:

Thank you very much for your letter of the 4th. I knew you would understand the purely friendlyand wholly unofficial character of our talk, and I appreciate the prompt steps you have taken tocorrect your Sirola* letter. Be wholly assured that nothing has transpired which diminishes myinterest in the questions which you present. Quite the contrary. I am much interested in** theconsiderations you are advancing and for the point of view you are urging. The issues*** at stakeare the interests that mean much for the whole world. To meet them adequately we need all theknowledge and wisdom we can possibly get****.

Cordially yours,Felix Frankfurter

Santeri Nuorteva, Esq.

* Yrjo Sirola was a Bolshevik and commissar in Finland.** Original text, "continually grateful to you for."*** Original text, "interests."**** Original text added "these days."

COMMENT

This letter by Frankfurter was written to Nuorteva/Nyberg, a Bolshevik agent in the United States,at a time when Frankfurter held an official position as special assistant to Secretary of War Baker inthe War Department. Apparently Nyberg was willing to change a letter to commissar "Sirola"according to Frankfurter's instructions. The Lusk Committee acquired the original Frankfurter draftincluding Frankfurter's changes and not the letter received by Nyberg.

THE SOVIET BUREAU IN 1920

Position Name Citizenship Born Former Employment Representa tiveof USSR

Ludwig C.A.K.MARTENS

German Russia V-P of Weinberg &Posner Engineer ing

(120 Broadway)Office manager Gregory WEINSTEIN Russian Russia Journalist



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Secretary Santeri NUORTEVA Finnish Russia JournalistAssistantsecretary

Kenneth DURANT U.S. U.S. (1) U.S. Committeeon Public Information(2) Former aide toColonel House

Private secretary to NUOR TEVA

Dorothy KEEN U.S. U.S. High school

Translator Mary MODELL Russian Russia School in RussiaFile clerk Alexander COLEMAN U.S. U.S. High schoolTelephone clerk Blanche

ABUSHEVITZRussian Russia High school

Office attendant Nestor KUNTZEVICH

Russian Russia —

Military expert Lt. Col. Boris Tagueeff Roustam BEK

Russian Russia Military critic on Daily Express(London)

Commercial DepartmentDirector A. HELLER Russian U.S. International Oxy gen

CompanySecretary Ella TUCH Russian U.S. U.S. firmsClerk Rose HOLLAND U.S. U.S. Gary School LeagueClerk Henrietta

MEEROWICHRussian Russia Social worker

Clerk Rose BYERS Russian Russia SchoolStatistician Vladimir

OLCHOVSKYRussian Russia Russian Army

Information DepartmentDirector Evans CLARK U.S. U.S. Princeton UniversityClerk Nora G. SMITHMAN U.S. U.S. Ford Peace

ExpeditionSteno Etta FOX U.S. U.S. War Trade Board

— Wilfred R.HUMPHRIES

U.K. — American Red Cross

Technical Dept. Director Arthur ADAMS Russian U.S. —

Educational Dept.Director William MALISSOFF Russian U.S. Columbia UniversityMedical Dept. Director Leo A. HUEBSCH Russian U.S. Medical doctor

D. H. DUBROWSKY Russian U.S. Medical doctor Legal Dept. Director Morris HILLQUIT Lithuanian — —

Counsel retained: Charles RECHT

Dudley FieldMALONE



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George CordonBATTLE

Dept. of Economics & Statistics Director Isaac A. HOURWICH Russian U.S. U.S. Bureau of

CensusEva JOFFE Russian U.S. National Child

Labor CommissionSteno Elizabeth

GOLDSTEINRussian U.S. Student

Editorial Staff of Soviet RussiaManagingeditor

Jacob w.HARTMANN

U.S. U.S. College of Cityof New York

Steno Ray TROTSKY Russian Russia StudentTranslator Theodnre

BRESLAUER Russian Russia —

Clerk Vastly IVANOFF Russian Russia — Clerk David OLDFIELD Russian Russia —

Translator J. BLANKSTEIN Russian Russia —

SOURCE: U.S., House,Conditions in Russia (Committee on Foreign Affairs),66th Cong., 3rd sess. (Washington, D.C., 1921).See also British list in U.S. State Department Decimal File, 316-22-656, which also has the name of Julius Hammer.

DOCUMENT NO. 7

DESCRIPTION

Letter from National City Bank of New York to the U.S. Treasury, April 15, 1919, with regard toLudwig Martens and his associate Dr. Julius Hammer (316-118).

DOCUMENT

The National City Bank of New York New York, April 15, 1919

Honorable Joel Rathbone,Assistant Secretary of the TreasuryWashington, D.C.

Dear Mr. Rathbone:

I beg to hand you herewith photographs of two documents which we have received this morning byregistered mail from a Mr. L. Martens who claims to be the representative in the United States of the Russian Socialist Federal Soviet Republic, and witnessed by a Dr. Julius Hammer for the ActingDirector of the Financial Department.



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You will see from these documents that there is a demand being made upon us for any and all fundson deposit with us in the name of Mr. Boris Bakhmeteff, alleged Russian Ambassador in the UnitedStates, or in the name of any individual, committee, or mission purporting to act in behalf of theRussian Government in subordination to Mr. Bakhmeteff or directly.

We should be very glad to receive from you whatever advice or instructions you may care to give usin this matter.

Yours respectfully,[sgd.] J. H. Carter,

Vice President.

JHC:M

Enclosure

COMMENTS

The significance of this letter is related to the long-time association (1917-1974) of the Hammer family with the Soviets.

DOCUMENT NO. 8

DESCRIPTION

Letter dated August 3, 1920, from Soviet courier "Bill" Bobroff to Kenneth Durant, former aide to

Colonel House. Taken from Bobroff by U.S. Department of Justice.

DOCUMENT

Department of JusticeBureau of Investigation,15 Park Row, New York City, N. Y.,August 10, 1920

Director Bureau of InvestigationUnited States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.

Dear Sir: Confirming telephone conversation with Mr. Ruch today, I am transmitting herewithoriginal documents taken from the effects of B. L. Bobroll, steamship Frederick VIII.

The letter addressed Mr. Kenneth Durant, signed by Bill, dated August 3, 1920, together with thetranslation from "Pravda," July 1, 1920, signed by Trotzki, and copies of cablegrams were foundinside the blue envelope addressed Mr. Kenneth Durant, 228 South Nineteenth Street, Philadelphia,Pa. This blue envelope was in turn sealed inside the white envelope attached.

Most of the effects of Mr. Bobroff consisted of machinery catalogues, specifications,correspondence regarding the shipment of various equipment, etc., to Russian ports. Mr. Bobroff



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was closely questioned by Agent Davis and the customs authorities, and a detailed report of samewill be sent to Washington.

Very truly yours,G. F. Lamb,

Division Superintendent

LETTER TO KENNETH DURANT

Dear Kenneth: Thanks for your most welcome letter. I have felt very much cut off and hemmed in,a feeling which has been sharply emphasized by recent experiences. I have felt distressed atinability to force a different attitude toward the bureau and to somehow get funds to you. To cable$5,000 to you, as was done last week, is but a sorry joke. I hope the proposal to sell gold inAmerica, about which we have been cabling recently, will soon be found practicable. Yesterday wecabled asking if you could sell 5,000,000 rubles at a minimum of 45 cents, present market rate being 51.44 cents. That would net at least $2,225,000. L's present need is $2,000,000 to pay NielsJuul & Co., in Christiania, for the first part of the coal shipment from America to Vardoe,Murmansk, and Archangel. The first ship is nearing Vardoe and the second left New York aboutJuly 28. Altogether, Niels Juul & Co., or rather the Norges' Bank, of Christiania, on their and our account, hold $11,000,000 gold rubles of ours, which they themselves brought from Reval toChristiania, as security for our coal order and the necessary tonnage, but the offers for purchase of this gold that they have so far been able to get are very poor, the best being $575 per kilo, whereasthe rate offered by the American Mint or Treasury Department is now $644.42, and considering thelarge sum involved it would be a shame to let it go at too heavy a loss. I hope that ere you get thisyou will have been able to effect the sale, at the same time thus getting a quarter of a million dollarsor more for the bureau. If we can't in some way pay the $2,000,000 in Christiania, that was due four days ago, within a very short time, Niels Juul & Co. will have the right to sell our gold that theynow hold at the best price then obtainable, which, as stated above, is quite low.

We don't know yet how the Canadian negotiations are going on. We understand Nuorteva turnedover the strings to Shoen when N.'s arrest seemed imminent. We don't at this writing know where Nuorteva is. Our guess is that after his enforced return to England from Esbjerg, Denmark, Sir BasilThomson had him shipped aboard a steamer for Reval, but we have not yet heard from Reval thathe has arrived there, and we certainly would hear from Goukovski or from N. himself. Humphriessaw Nuorteva at Esbjerg, and is himself in difficulties with the Danish police because of it. All hisconnections are being probed for; his passport has been taken away: he has been up twice for examination, and it looks as if he will be lucky if he escapes deportation. It was two weeks ago that Nuorteva arrived at Esbjerg, 300 miles from here, but having no Danish visé, the Danish authoritiesrefused to permit him to land, and he was transferred to a steamer due to sail at 8 o'clock thefollowing morning. By depositing 200 kroner he was allowed shore leave for a couple of hours.

Wanting to get Copenhagen on long-distance wire and having practically no more money, he oncemore pawned that gold watch of his for 25 kroner, therewith getting in touch with Humphries, whowithin half an hour jumped aboard the night train, slept on the floor, and arrived at Esbjerg at 7:30.Humphries found Nuorteva, got permission from the captain to go aboard, had 20 minutes with N.,then had to go ashore and the boat sailed. Humphries was then invited to the police office by two plain-clothes men, who had been observing the proceedings. He was closely questioned, addresstaken, then released, and that night took train back to Copenhagen. He sent telegrams to Ewer, of Daily Herald, Shoen, and to Kliskho, at 128 New Bond Street, urging them to be sure and meet Nuorteva's boat, so that N. couldn't again be spirited away, but we don't know yet just whathappened. The British Government vigorously denied that they had any intention of sending him toFinland. Moscow has threatened reprisals if anything happens to him. Meantime, the investigationof H. has begun. He was called upon at his hotel by the police, requested to go to headquarters (butnot arrested), and we understand that his case is now before the minister of justice. Whatever may



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be the final outcome, Humphries comments upon the reasonable courtesy shown him, contrasting itwith the ferocity of the Red raids in America.

He found that at detective headquarters they knew of some of his outgoing letters and telegrams.

I was interested in your favorable comment upon the Krassin interview of Tobenken's (you do notmention the Litvinoff one), because I had to fight like a demon with L. to get the opportunities for Tobenken. Through T. arrived with a letter from Nuorteva, as also did Arthur Ruhl, L. brusquelyturned down in less than one minute the application T. was making to go into Russia, would hardlytake time to hear him, saying it was impossible to allow two correspondents from the same paper toenter Russia. He gave a visé to Ruhl, largely because of a promise made last summer to Ruhl by L.Ruhl then went off to Reval, there to await the permission that L. had cabled asking Moscow togive. Tobenken, a nervous, almost a broken man because of his turn down, stayed here. I realizedthe mistake that had been made by the snap judgment, and started in on the job of getting itchanged. Cutting a long story short, I got him to Reval with a letter to Goukovsky from L. In themeantime Moscow refused Ruhl, notwithstanding L's visé. L. was maddened at affront to his visé,and insisted that it be honored. It was, and Ruhl prepared to leave. Suddenly word came fromMoscow to Ruhl revoking the permission and to Litvinoff, saying that information had reachedMoscow that Ruhl was in service of State Department. At time of writing, both Tobenken and Ruhlare in Reval, stuck.

I told L. this morning of the boat leaving tomorrow and of the courier B. available, asked him if hehad anything to write to Martens, offered to take it in shorthand for him, but no, he said he hadnothing to write about that I might perhaps send duplicates of our recent cables to Martens.

Kameneff passed by here on a British destroyer en route to London, and didn't stop off here at all,and Krassin went direct from Stockholm. Of the negotiations, allied and Polish, and of the generalsituation you know about as much as we do here. L's negotiations with the Italians have finallyresulted in establishing of mutual representation. Our representative, Vorovsky, has already gone toItaly and their representative, M. Gravina, is en route to Russia. We have just sent two ship loads of

Russian wheat to Italy from Odessa.Give my regards to the people of your circle that I know. With all good wishes to you.

Sincerely yours,Bill

The batch of letters you sent — 5 Cranbourne Road, Charlton cum Hardy, Manchester, has not yetarrived.

L's recommendation to Moscow, since M. asked to move to Canada, is that M. should be appointedthere, and that N., after having some weeks in Moscow acquainting himself first hand, should beappointed representative to America.

L. is sharply critical of the bureau for giving too easily visés and recommendations. He wasobviously surprised and incensed when B. reached here with contracts secured in Moscow uponstrength of letters given to him by M. The later message from M. evidently didn't reach Moscow.What L. plans to do about it I don't know. I would suggest that M. cable in cipher hisrecommendation to L. in this matter. L. would have nothing to do with B. here. Awkward situationmay be created.

L. instanced also the Rabinoff recommendation.

Two envelopes, Mr. Kenneth Durant, 228 South Nineteenth Street, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.A.



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SOURCE: U.S. State Department Decimal File, 316-119-458/64.

NOTE: IDENTIFICATION OF INDIVIDUALS

William (Bill) L.BOBROFF

Soviet courier and agent. OperatedBobroff Foreign Trading and EngineeringCompany of Milwaukee. Invented thevoting system used in the Wisconsin

Legilature.Kenneth DURANT Aide to Colonel House; see text.

SHOEN Employed by International Oxygen Co.,owned by Heller, a prominent financier and Communist.

EWER Soviet agent, reporter for London Daily Herald .

KLISHKO Soviet agent in Scandinavia

NUORTEVA Also known as Alexander Nyberg, firstSoviet representative in United States; seetext.

Sir Basil THOMPSON Chief of British Intelligence

"L" LITVINOFF.

"H" Wilfred Humphries, associated withMartens and Litvinoff, member of RedCross in Russia.

KRASSINBolshevik commissar of trade and labor,former head of Siemens-Schukert inRussia.

COMMENTS

This letter suggests close ties between Bobroff and Durant.

DOCUMENT NO. 9

DESCRIPTION

Memorandum referring to a request from Davison (Morgan partner) to Thomas Thacher (WallStreet attorney associated with the Morgans) and passed to Dwight Morrow (Morgan partner), April13, 1918.

DOCUMENT



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The Berkeley Hotel, LondonApril 13th, 1918.

Hon. Walter H. Page,American Ambassador to England,London.

Dear Sir:

Several days ago I received a request from Mr. H. P. Davison, Chairman of the War Council of theAmerican Red Cross, to confer with Lord Northcliffe regarding the situation in Russia, and then to proceed to Paris for other conferences. Owing to Lord Northcliffe's illness I have not been able toconfer with him, but am leaving with Mr. Dwight W. Morrow, who is now staying at the BerkeleyHotel, a memorandum of the situation which Mr. Morrow will submit to Lord Northcliffe on thelatter's return to London.

For your information and the information of the Department I enclose to you, herewith, a copy of the memorandum.

Respectfully yours,[sgd.] Thomas D. Thacher.

COMMENT

Lord Northcliffe had just been appointed director of propaganda. This is interesting in the light of William B. Thompson's subsidizing of Bolshevik propaganda and his connection with the Morgan-Rockefeller interests.

DOCUMENT NO. 10 DESCRIPTION

This document is a memorandum from D.C. Poole, Division of Russian Affairs in the Departmentof State, to the secretary of state concerning a conversation with Mr. M. Oudin of General Electric.

DOCUMENT

May 29, 1922

Mr. Secretary:

Mr. Oudin, of the General Electric Company, informed me this morning that his company feels thatthe time is possibly approaching to begin conversations with Krassin relative to a resumption of business in Russia. I told him that it is the view of the Department that the course to be pursued inthis matter by American firms is a question of business judgment and that the Department wouldcertainly interpose no obstacles to an American firm resuming operations in Russia on any basiswhich the firm considered practicable.

He said that negotiations are now in progress between the General Electric Company and theAllgemeine Elektrizitats Gesellschaft for a resumption of the working agreement which they had



before the war. He expects that the agreement to be made will include a provision for cooperation of Russia.

Respectfully,DCP D.C. Poole

COMMENT

This is an important document as it relates to the forthcoming resumption of relations with Russia by an important American company. It illustrates that the initiative came from the company, notfrom the State Department, and that no consideration was given to the effect of transfer of GeneralElectric technology to a self-declared enemy. This GE agreement was the first step down a road of major technical transfers that led directly to the deaths of 100,000 Americans and countless allies.

13285636 Antony Sutton Wall Street the Bolshevik Revolution Copy

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